Citation Nr: 1013747
Decision Date: 04/12/10 Archive Date: 04/29/10
DOCKET NO. 08-00 437 ) DATE
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On appeal from the
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Muskogee,
Oklahoma
THE ISSUE
Entitlement to an initial compensable evaluation for
bilateral hearing loss.
REPRESENTATION
Appellant represented by: Disabled American Veterans
WITNESS AT HEARING ON APPEAL
Appellant
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD
Christopher Murray, Associate Counsel
INTRODUCTION
The Veteran had active military service from May 1961 to
January 1968.
This case comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board)
on appeal of a June 2007 rating decision of the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Muskogee,
Oklahoma.
The Veteran testified before the undersigned Acting Veterans
Law Judge at a March 2010 hearing conducted via
videoconference. A transcript of the hearing is of record.
The appeal is REMANDED to the RO via the Appeals Management
Center (AMC), in Washington, DC. VA will notify the
appellant if further action is required.
REMAND
The Veteran contends he is entitled to an initial compensable
evaluation for his service-connected bilateral hearing loss.
In an August 2008 supplemental statement of the case, the RO
relied on a May 2007 VA contract examination and February
2008 audiological evaluation in continuing the current
noncompensable evaluation. However, at the March 2010 Board
hearing, the Veteran asserted that his service-connected
bilateral hearing loss has increased in severity since his
last VA examination. See March 2010 Board hearing transcript
at 3. As such, a new VA examination is therefore warranted.
See 38 C.F.R. § 3.159 (2009); see also VAOPGCPREC 11-95
(1995) (a new examination is appropriate when there is an
assertion of an increase in severity since the last
examination).
Accordingly, the case is REMANDED for the following action:
1. Schedule the Veteran for a VA
audiological examination to determine
the current severity of his bilateral
hearing loss. The claims file,
including a copy of this REMAND, must
be made available to the examiner for
review, and the examination report
should reflect that such review was
completed. All studies deemed
appropriate in the medical opinion of
the examiner should be performed, and
all the findings should be set forth in
detail. The examiner should
specifically comment on the impact of
the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss
upon his social and industrial
activities including his employability.
The rationale for all opinions
expressed must be provided.
2. After completing the above, and any
other development deemed necessary,
readjudicate the Veteran's claim based
on the entirety of the evidence. If
the benefits sought on appeal are not
granted to the appellant's
satisfaction, he and his representative
should be provided with a supplemental
statement of the case. An appropriate
period of time should be allowed for
response.
The appellant has the right to submit additional evidence and
argument on the matter or matters the Board has remanded.
Kutscherousky v. West, 12 Vet. App. 369 (1999).
(CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE)
This claim must be afforded expeditious treatment. The law
requires that all claims that are remanded by the Board of
Veterans' Appeals or by the United States Court of Appeals
for Veterans Claims for additional development or other
appropriate action must be handled in an expeditious manner.
See 38 U.S.C.A. §§ 5109B, 7112 (West Supp. 2009).
_________________________________________________
MATTHEW D. TENNER
Acting Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals
Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 7252 (West 2002), only a decision of the
Board of Veterans' Appeals is appealable to the United States
Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. This remand is in the
nature of a preliminary order and does not constitute a
decision of the Board on the merits of your appeal.
38 C.F.R. § 20.1100(b) (2009).